FROM CBD NEWS SOURCE
GREENVILLE, N.C. – Dan Roszel, who has served as an assistant on the East Carolina University baseball staff for the past two seasons, has been promoted to associate head coach according to an announcement by Pirates’ Head Coach Billy Godwin on Monday.
During his first two seasons with the Pirates, Roszel has mentored one of the top pitching staffs in the country, which has included seven Major League Draft picks, six All-Conference USA selections and helped ECU to a 77-45-1 record with a pair of NCAA Regional appearances.
“Dan Roszel is among the best pitching coaches and recruiters in the country,” said Godwin. “His promotion is well deserved because of his work ethic, loyalty and leadership. He always represents East Carolina with professionalism, integrity, and we are fortunate to have him on our staff.”
After losing five hurlers from the 2011 squad, which included two-third’s of its weekend rotation, Roszel put together another solid staff that ranked 43rd nationally in ERA (3.35) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.41), while also ranking in the Top-50 in three other categories. Junior Andy Smithmyer (1.92) and senior Kevin Brandt (2.12) ranked 13th and 32nd nationally in ERA, while fellow upperclassman Tyler Joyner finished his junior campaign ranked 18th in the country in walks allowed per nine innings (1.17) and 21st in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.67).
For the second-straight year, three of his pitchers earned C-USA post-season honors in Brandt (first-team), Jharel Cotton (second-team) and Jeff Hoffman (all-freshman team) on its way to ranking among the league leaders in 10 statistical categories including fewest walks (176/1st), saves (20/1st), ERA (2nd), opposing batting average (.248/2nd), pick offs (14/2nd), earned runs (205/3rd), innings pitched (550.2/3rd), total strikeouts (424/3rd), strikeouts looking (133/3rd) and wins (36/4th). Brandt (18th round by Tampa Bay Rays) and Cotton (20th round by Los Angeles Dodgers) were selected in the 2012 Major League First-Year Player Draft.
In his initial year with the Pirates in 2011, Roszel pitching staff sported the seventh-lowest earned run average (2.67) in the nation, while also ranking in the Top-20 in combined shutouts (8.0/t8th), shutouts (9.0/t10th) and hits allowed per nine innings (17th/7.93).
Behind a trio of All-Conference USA performers in Seth Maness (first-team), Kevin Brandt (second-team) and Brad Mincey (second-team), the Pirates ranked in the Top-2 in 11 statistical categories and led the league (all games) in ERA, fewest runs allowed (222), opposing batting average (.239), strikeouts looking (152), fewest earned runs allowed (167) and fewest home runs allowed (15) earning Roszel C-USA Assistant Coach-of-the-Year honors by College Baseball Daily.
Individually, four of his pitchers ranked among the league leaders in ERA with Mincey (1.57/9th nationally), Maness (1.71/17th nationally) and Brandt (2.26/54th nationally) occupying the top three spots, while starter Mike Wright finished sixth with a 2.79 ERA. Maness also ranked 17th nationally in complete games (5) and 24th in wins (10). Along with Wright (3rd/Orioles), Maness (11th/Cardinals) and Mincey (28th/Marlins), fellow hurlers Shawn Armstrong (18th/Indians) and Seth Simmons (40th/Diamondbacks) were selected in the 2011 Major League First-Year Player Draft.
During his 12-year coaching career at the collegiate level, Roszel has seen 23 of his pitchers sign professional contacts with three playing the Major Leagues, including 2012 American League All-Star Chris Sale, who was selected by the Chicago White Sox with the 13th overall pick in 2010. Roszel also mentored current Chicago Cub hurler Casey Coleman (15th round selection by the Cubs in 2008) and former major leaguer and 2006 International League Most Valuable Player Heath Phillips (10th round pick by the White Sox out of Lake City Community College). Both Coleman (Aug. 2) and Sale (Aug. 6) made their Major League debuts in 2010.
Heath Hembree, a fifth round selection out of College of Charleston in 2010, is listed as the No. 3 prospect in the San Francisco Giants organization and is currently pitching for the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies of the Pacific Coast League. Maness, who was named organizational Pitcher-of-the-Year in 2011 by St. Louis Cardinals, is one of three Pirates from a year ago that have been promoted to Double-A (Springfield Cardinals) in 2012 and he is joined by Armstrong (Akron Aeros) and Wright (Bowie Baysox).
Prior to coming to ECU, Roszel spent two seasons at the College of Charleston, where he served as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. He produced some of his best work in 2010, helping the Cougars receive an at-large bid and No. 2 seed at the NCAA Tournament. The College of Charleston advanced to the Myrtle Beach Regional Championship Game before falling to No. 4 national seed Coastal Carolina 11-10. The Cougars ended the season ranked 27th in the final National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) poll.
Roszel helped three CofC hurlers, Hembree, Kevin Decker (39th round) and Casey Lucchese (39th round), get selected in the 2010 MLB draft. In 2010, Decker was a SoCon Sports Media Association All-Conference and SoCon All-Conference Second-Teams member while rookie Christian Powell was named to the league’s all-freshman team.
In his first season with the Cougars, the pitching staff led the team to a 35-22 overall record as it recorded 367 strikeouts in 496.2 innings. At the end of the campaign, Jesse Simpson, a 40th round selection by the St. Louis Cardinals, was a media and coaches second-team SoCon selection as a senior. Roszel also guided David Peterson to Coaches All-Freshman Team honors.
Roszel joined the Cougars after spending two seasons as an assistant at Florida Gulf Coast University, where he helped the Eagles to a 78-32 record and an appearance in the NCAA Division II Regional as well as an Atlantic Sun Conference championship. In 2007, his pitching staff ranked 21st nationally in team ERA with a 3.50 mark. The staff also stood second in Division II in strikeouts per game (9.16), fourth in strikeouts (486) and held opponent hitters to a .254 batting average, all records at FGCU.
During 2008, his staff helped the Eagles to another record-breaking season, becoming the only team in NCAA history to win a conference championship in its first year of Division I competition upon arrival from Division II. That year the Gulf Coast staff compiled a 3.17 earned run average, surrendering just 170 runs in 482.1 innings pitched. Richard Bleier led the way, as he was the unanimous selection for the Atlantic Sun Pitcher-of-the-Year award, going 7-1 overall with a 2.09 ERA and 76 strikeouts. Reliever J.J. Crumbley joined Bleier on the conference first team, while starter Pete Woodworth was a second-team honoree and rookies Richie Erath and Chris Sale were named to the all-freshman team.
Prior to his time at FGCU, Roszel spent four years at Gardner-Webb University. While at Gardner-Webb, Roszel worked as the pitching coach and the recruiting coordinator. In four years at GWU, Roszel had two of his players get drafted on the first day of the MLB draft.
He has coached four of the top-six pitchers on Gardner-Webb’s career wins list. In 2003, his pitching staff threw a school-record 20 complete games. Before becoming Gardner-Webb’s pitching coach, Roszel spent two years at Lake City Community College as an assistant coach.
Roszel, a 2000 graduate of the University of North Florida, and his wife Melissa have two daughters, Madyson (8) and Makenna (4). Roszel received his degree in criminal justice with a minor in political science.
